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Friday, July 31, 2015

Comfort in the Ordinary

The
word for our #wholemama linkup this week is ordinary. When I
think of the word ordinary, I think of simple, common,
unremarkable. Business as usual in the everyday routine of life.

Nothing
special.

Grass
and weeds and flowers and trees grow and die. The sun shines or
clouds shower us with rain. Seasons come and go. Dogs run around
being curious, then lie on the porch panting loudly. We get up each
day, eat our meals, do our work, then go to bed only to rise the next
morning and do it all over again.

Life
goes on.

When
I see the same things every day, my eyes tend to pass right over them
without a thought. I just expect them to be there. All the appliances
are in the same place doing their jobs, except when they break. Beds
are in the bedrooms. Food is in the kitchen. Mugs hang below a shelf
while various things have collected on top. Tiny teapots are on a
small display cabinet. It's the same every day.

What
if we looked at ordinary with new eyes?

What
if with a closer look, we discover that ordinary can be quite
extraordinary?

This
delicate ceramic doll was a gift from my grandmother in 1966.I was 14
years old. Using ordinary materials like lace and a bed sheet she
created the beautiful dress.It has survived through many moves with
the only damage being a broken finger and loss of some of the lace. I
see this doll every day thinking nothing about it, but when I pause
to look at it remembering my grandmother and the love she put into
it, I find joy.

What
if we looked closer at our lives and our possessions?

I
think we would find much to be thankful for. If we slow down and
intentionally look for the beauty throughout our day, we just might
be surprised at what we find.

I
see this cross stitch collection every day without a second thought.
Taking a closer look I see the detail and remember all the hard work
that went into sewing them. I only did one of them while my super
talented mother did the others. Looking at them reminds me of her and
her loving hands. Nothing
ordinary about that.

We
may get tired of seeing the same objects day after day, but there is
a comfort in knowing that some things never change.The sun rises
daily with all kinds of possibilities awaiting us. As it goes down at
night the moon comes out faithfully just as God has planned. It may
seem ordinary, but is it really?

(photography by gayl)

We
can ask God to help us look for comfort and peace in the ordinary, to
practice gratitude for the simple things, to be aware of
opportunities to bless others. A smile goes a long way to bring light
to someone which in turn brightens our day, too.

Let's
be whole mamas who take our ordinary days and make them
extraordinary!